Legal claims defining the scope of protection. Each claim is shown in both the original legal language and a plain English translation.
1. A method of operating an electronic gift card provider server system operational on a distributed computer network for administering electronic gift cards on behalf of third-party retailers by providing a customized webpage interface, the method comprising: receiving, by a dedicated server of the electronic gift card provider server system over the distributed computer network from a retailer server system associated with a retailer entity, a request to transmit a webpage interface configured to receive data for generating an electronic gift card associated with the retailer entity, the request being generated by the retailer server system in response to an input from computing terminal operated by a user received by a web site operated by the retailer entity; receiving, by the dedicated server from the retailer server system, a design element including an electronic image specific to the retailer entity; customizing the webpage interface by combining, on a webpage hosted by the electronic gift card provider server system, (a) the design element with (b) a plurality of data-input fields provided by the electronic gift card provider server system that is independent of the retailer server system, the data-input fields being configured to receive data associated with a recipient of the electronic gift card and a monetary value of the electronic gift card; transmitting, by the electronic gift card provider server system in response to receiving the request from the retailer server system, the customized webpage interface over the distributed computer network to a web browser application running on the computing terminal operated by the user; receiving, by the electronic gift card provider server system over the distributed computer network from the webpage interface operating on the computing terminal, in response to input from the computing terminal operated by the user, data inputs in the data-input fields, the data inputs being associated with the recipient of the electronic gift card and the monetary value; receiving, by the dedicated server from a gift card provider server over the distributed computer network, a unique gift card code and associating the unique gift card code with the electronic gift card; creating an electronic gift card account storing a unique code and the design element correlated to an encoded electronic representation of the electronic gift card; and transmitting, by the electronic gift card provider server system over the distributed computer network to a computing device of the recipient specified in the data inputs, the encoded electronic representation of the electronic gift card having the design element, the unique gift card code, and the monetary value.
A system for providing customized virtual gift cards. A dedicated server receives a request from a retailer's server to display a webpage for creating a virtual gift card. The retailer sends a design element (e.g., logo) to the dedicated server. The dedicated server combines the retailer's design element with standard input fields (recipient, amount) on a webpage hosted by the gift card provider. This customized webpage is sent to the user. The server receives the recipient and amount from the webpage, gets a unique gift card code, and creates an electronic gift card account linking the code and design. Finally, the system sends an electronic version of the gift card (including the design, code, and value) to the recipient.
2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving, by the electronic gift card provider server system from the webpage interface operating on the computing terminal, in response to input from the user, data specifying at least one customizable design element, and wherein the electronic gift card includes the at least one customizable design element.
The virtual gift card system from the previous description also allows the user to customize the gift card design further. The webpage interface receives data specifying at least one customizable design element (e.g., background color, font), and the final electronic gift card includes this user-defined element in addition to the retailer-provided design.
3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the webpage interface further includes a preview portion displaying the at least one customizable design element according to the data from the user specifying the at least one customizable design element.
Building on the previous claim, the webpage interface includes a preview section. As the user customizes design elements (background color, font), the preview area dynamically updates to show the effect of these choices in real-time. This allows the user to visualize the appearance of the final electronic gift card before submission.
4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising generating a plurality of codes, each of the codes corresponding to one of a plurality of electronic gift cards, wherein the unique code for the electronic gift card is selected from the plurality of generated codes.
The virtual gift card system from the initial description generates a pool of unique codes for the electronic gift cards. When a new gift card is created, the system selects one of these pre-generated codes from the pool to assign to the card, instead of generating a new code each time.
5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving, by the dedicated server component of the electronic gift card provider server system from the retailer server system, the unique code for the electronic gift card.
In the virtual gift card system from the first description, instead of generating the unique gift card code itself, the dedicated server receives the unique code directly from the retailer's server. This allows the retailer to maintain control over the code generation process.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the webpage interface provided to the computing terminal operated by the user further comprises a plurality of design elements specific to the retailer entity associated with the electronic gift card.
In the virtual gift card system initially described, the webpage interface presented to the user includes multiple design elements that are specific to the retailer associated with the gift card, such as logos, branding, and imagery. These elements are incorporated into the gift card creation interface to reinforce brand identity.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the webpage interface further comprises a card template with a design element and layout specific to the retailer entity associated with the electronic gift card.
Expanding on the first description, the webpage interface provides a card template with a predefined design and layout that is tailored to the specific retailer. This template includes design elements (logos, colors) and a layout customized to the retailer's brand, providing a consistent and branded experience for the user creating the gift card.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the webpage interface includes one or more webpages, the method further comprising adding to the one or more webpages a link associated with a webpage hosted by retailer server system such that when selected, the user is redirected to the webpage hosted by the retailer server system.
Building on the first description, the webpage interface for gift card creation includes one or more pages. The system adds a link to these pages that directs the user to a webpage hosted by the retailer. When the user clicks the link, they are redirected to the retailer's website.
9. A host computer server system for facilitating electronic-based interactions between a computing device of a user and a third-party computer system of a third party over a distributed computer network via a customized webpage interface, the host computer server system comprising: one or more data storage modules; one or more server processors communicatively coupled to the one or more data storage modules; one or more communication devices communicatively coupling at least one of the one or more server processors with the computing device of the user and the third-party computer system via the distributed computer network, each of the computing device and the third-party computer system being coupled to a host of the host computer server system; and one or more memory devices communicatively coupled to the one or more server processors and storing processor-executable instructions which, when executed by at least one of the one or more server processors, cause the host computer server system to: receive, from the third-party computer system over the distributed computer network, a request to transmit to the user computing device a webpage interface configured to receive data for generating an electronic gift card associated with the third party, the request being generated by the third-party computer system in response to an input from the computing device received by the third-party computer system; receive, by the third-party computer system, a design element including an electronic image specific to a retailer entity; customize the webpage interface by combining on a webpage the design element with a plurality of data-input fields provided by the host computer server system independent of the third-party computer system, the data-input fields being configured to receive data associated with a recipient of the electronic gift card and a monetary value of the electronic gift card; transmit, over the distributed computer network in response to the request received from the third-party computer system, the customized webpage interface to a web browser application running on the computing device operated by the user; receive, from the webpage interface operating on the computing device of the user, in response to input from the user, data inputs in the data-input fields, the data inputs being associated with the recipient of the electronic gift card and the monetary value; receive over the distributed computer network a unique gift card code and associating the unique gift card code with the electronic gift card; store, in at least one of the one or more data storage modules, an electronic gift card account with a unique code and the specified design element correlated to an encoded electronic representation of the electronic gift card; and transmit, over the distributed computer network to a computing device of the designated recipient specified in the data inputs, the encoded electronic representation of the electronic gift card with the specified design element, the unique gift card code, and the monetary value.
A host computer server system facilitates interactions between a user's device and a third-party (retailer) system via a customized webpage. The server receives a request from the retailer to send a webpage for creating a virtual gift card. The retailer sends a design element. The server combines the retailer's design with standard input fields (recipient, amount) on a webpage. This customized webpage is sent to the user. The server receives the recipient and amount, gets a unique gift card code, and creates an electronic gift card account linking the code and design. Finally, the system sends an electronic version of the gift card to the recipient.
10. The host computer server system of claim 9 , wherein the one or more memory devices store additional instructions which cause the host computer server system to generate a plurality of codes, each of the codes corresponding to one of a plurality of electronic gift cards, wherein the unique code for the electronic gift card is selected from the generated codes.
The host computer server system described previously generates a pool of unique codes for the electronic gift cards. When a new gift card is created, the system selects one of these pre-generated codes from the pool to assign to the card.
11. The host computer server system of claim 9 , wherein the one or more memory devices store additional instructions which cause the host computer server system to receive the unique code for the electronic gift card from the third-party computer system.
In the host computer server system described earlier, the server receives the unique code directly from the third-party (retailer) system. This allows the retailer to maintain control over the code generation process.
12. The host computer server system of claim 9 , wherein the one or more memory devices store additional instructions which cause the host computer server system to: receive, from third-party computer system, a message including the code for the electronic gift card and an amount of a purchase made by the designated recipient; and debiting, from the stored electronic gift card account associated with the electronic gift card, the amount of the purchase.
The host computer server system from the initial description receives a message from the third-party retailer, including the gift card code and the purchase amount made by the recipient. The system then debits the purchase amount from the stored electronic gift card account associated with that gift card.
13. The host computer server system of claim 9 , wherein the one or more memory devices store additional instructions which cause the host computer server system to transmit a second webpage interface component to the computing device operated by the designated recipient, the second interface comprising a link to a dynamically generated webpage based upon a current status of the electronic gift card.
In addition to the previous host computer server features, the system transmits a second webpage to the recipient with a link to a dynamically-generated webpage showing the current status of the electronic gift card (e.g., balance, transaction history).
14. The host computer server system of claim 9 , wherein the storing the electronic gift card account includes associating the electronic gift card with an encrypted personal identification number.
The host computer server system previously described stores the electronic gift card account and associates it with an encrypted personal identification number (PIN) for added security. This PIN is required to access or use the gift card.
15. The host computer server system of claim 9 , wherein the webpage interface component further displays fields operable to receive a recipient contact input for the electronic gift card.
Building on the first host computer server system description, the webpage interface displays fields for the user to enter the recipient's contact information (e.g., email address, phone number) for the electronic gift card.
16. The host computer server system of claim 15 , wherein the one or more memory devices store additional instructions which cause the host computer server system to: receive, from the webpage interface component operating on the computing device of the user, the monetary value and the recipient contact input for the electronic gift card; and store in the electronic gift card account the monetary value and the recipient contact input correlated to the encoded electronic representation of the electronic gift card.
Expanding on the previous claim, the host computer server system receives the gift card amount and recipient contact details from the webpage. It then stores this information, along with the electronic representation of the gift card, in the electronic gift card account.
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September 5, 2017
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